Antivirus is absolutely crucial software that needs to be running on your laptop, phone, and any other vulnerable device you may have.
As you probably already know, modern security apps provide a barrier against viruses and all sorts of other threats to your data, including ransomware. The last thing you need is for all your documents to be encrypted and unable to open them.
However, cybercriminals have evolved and know that you, the person, are the easiest target. You are much more likely to fall in love with a fake website and give them your login details when you log in without realizing it is not the genuine item.
Even worse, you could hand over your payment information. It’s easy to do with the persuasive emails and text messages that are becoming increasingly common.
But the good news is that the best antivirus also protects you from these kinds of things: it will warn you about dangerous links in texts and emails, or suspicious results in web searches.
Finally, the best packages come with extras such as a password manager, VPN, and can also alert you if your personal information is leaked online so you can change passwords and other security information.
You might be considering getting a free antivirus, and that’s definitely an option. Just keep in mind that it tends to be more basic and probably won’t offer all of the protections mentioned above.
For example, you won’t find a free antivirus with a usable Attached VPN service and free apps tend to urge you to upgrade to get full functionality. However, their malware protection is just as good.
Below, we’ve rounded up what we consider to be the best antivirus choices for students, but you can also read our antivirus software reviews if you want more details on a particular product.
Avast One Essential
With an easy-to-use interface, the fact that it’s available for Android, iPhone, Windows, and macOS, and includes a generous number of features, Avast One Essential is the top choice for any student.
Sure, there’s antivirus, but you also get 5GB per week to use the VPN service, email scam protection, and a scanner for any compromised passwords so you can change them.
AVG Free Antivirus
AVG’s free antivirus is its most basic offering and – naturally – as with others here, you can get better protection if you upgrade to the paid Premium version.
But the free tier includes protection against phishing (in a web browser) as well as ransomware and virus protection.
You can install it on Windows, macOS, Android, and iPhones and iPads.
McAfee Total Protection – 2 years, 5 devices
3
From: McAfee
Was: £159.99 / $159.99
NOW:
£69.99 / $69.99
(£90 / $90 off)
Current McAfee offers get you a discount subscription for one or two years, and for five or 10 devices.
You can choose the plan you want on the website, but we’ve listed the price for the two-year, five-device plan. You can use the software on laptops, phones, Macs and any other supported devices. If you were to go for the 10-device deal and use all the licenses, you’d only pay £3.99 / $3.99 per device for each year of that two-year deal.
Usually only the first year is given and there is no option to get this award for two years.
Norton 360 Deluxe – 1 year, 5 devices
4
From: Norton
Was: £84.99 / $104.99
NOW:
£29.99 / $49.99
(£55 / $55 off)
Norton is one of our top antivirus picks, so it’s good news that you can get the first 12 months for just £29.99 / $49.99, saving you £55 / $55.
Note that the renewal price is £84.99/$104.99 per year thereafter.
Alternatively, you can purchase a two-year subscription (you’ll find that option on the same page) and get two years for £89.99/$89.99 (£44.99/$44.99 per year), which seems like a worse deal, but don’t. remember that you get a discount on both years, not just the first, East cheaper overall.
Read our review: Norton 360 Deluxe review
Avira Free Security
With Avira’s free suite, you get antivirus, a basic VPN service with a limit of 500MB per month.
It also has a few extras such as a strong password generator and battery saver and speed up tools for Windows. But it is also available for Mac, iPhone and Android.
There’s a lot of hassle to upgrade, but it won’t cost you a penny.
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